We chat to three South African drag artists about their craft and how they got into this popular form of theatre.
Cross-dressing has been around almost as long as men and women have been defined by their gender. Throughout history, traditional performing arts – theatre, opera, ballet – frequently saw men playing the roles of women.
Shakespearean plays are a case in point, and more than once the Bard disguised his female characters as men, which he believed allowed them to “move more freely, speak more freely, and use their wit and intelligence to overcome problems.” The music world too has seen a blurring of gender roles and alluring androgyny, from Marlene Dietrich to David Bowie, Annie Lennox to Boy George.
And then there is drag … a genre of performance art that is alive and well in South Africa. We chatted to three South Africans whose performances have been celebrated across the country.
HOLLY
Christopher Dudgeon
Razor-tongued Holly is one third of the Trolley Dollies, who perform their raunchy, racy cabaret at Cape Town’s Gate69. Dudgeon also writes these shows.
“As a drag queen you’re able to say things other people cannot get away with without offending,” he says. “When I found myself in the position of writing shows in our theatre as drag queens it was fantastic because I can say things to audiences I really believe everyone needs to hear. The society we live in is still so prejudiced and unwilling to accept otherness, and it needs to be spoken about and the best way to do that, I find, is through humour.”
Christopher did not initially get into a dress and heels willingly; together with Rudi Jansen (who plays Molly the Trolley Dolly) he was persuaded by Brendan van Rhyn aka Cathy Specific, who was looking for two men of similar height to him for a drag trio: “It challenged all my internalised and repressed homophobia and all my repressed prejudices. There’s such a stigma attached to drag.”
“For me, Gate69 represents the fact we are all in some way, drag queens. We all get up in the morning and dress up, and say to the world ‘this is who I am’ with what you put on your body. We are all projecting in some way.”
The goal is to honour women in their portrayal, he says. “There are aspects of you which are beautiful which we want to heighten, amplify. It is in no way ridicule. We all absolutely adore women,” he says.
KING ST FOX
Fox Bruins-Lich
“Suave and secretive,” reads her biography, “King St Fox epitomises gender fluidity with tongue-in-cheek boylesque performances that often leave ladies – and gentlemen – questioning their preferences.”
Seeing Fox on stage will challenge your concept of male and female, and behind the he is a she. “I am a drag king performer,” she says, “who specialises in striptease style performances called boylesque, a division within the burlesque art form which is mainly a female dominated community.”
Being a drag king allows Fox to play with the sides of her personality that are often misunderstood by the majority of society, because “I am not as feminine as I should be considering the fact that I am a woman.”
She feels fortunate that, to a degree, she can take her drag king persona and apply it to parts of her everyday life. “I get to disassociate myself from the me that is a product of 32 years of traditional social programming, so basically I get to recreate who I want to be vicariously through my performances and the persona I project on and off stage. It’s a beautiful kind of freedom in a world that likes to put things in boxes.”
As a producer of Gender Bender shows, Fox’s aim is to introduce the art of drag to a wider audience, as well as continue to grow the platform for future gender bending performance artists. Black Orchid Academy, which has been teaching burlesque since 2009, has recently introduced classes for boylesque.
“Providing workshops will give opportunities to many like-minded souls to explore self-empowerment and sensuality in a safe space, and they will be hosted by yours truly, King St Fox and guests.”
Facebook @StFoxOfficial
ODIDIVA
Odidi Mfenyana
Born in Bo Kaap, Cape Town, Odidi Mfenyana was the laat lammetjie of Reverend Mlamli Mfenyana and mum Frida. Rev. Mfenyana was the head of the Holy Cross Anglican Church in Nyanga and a political activist. As a result, young Odidi got his first screen time when, at about three years old, the BBC came to film in their back yard, shortly after Archbishop Desmond Tutu won the Nobel Peace Prize.
Growing up singing at the church and school choir, as well as playing musical instruments, it was natural for Odidi to gravitate towards drama. After graduating from Waterfront Theatre School and attending Cape Academy of Dramatic Art to “spruce up the acting side of things”, Odidi starred in numerous productions and TV shows.
Then came one Monday karaoke night at Bronx – a famous bar in Green Point’s “Pink District” – when he sang George Michael’s “Freedom”. Playwright (among many other things) Brett Bailey was in the audience and Odidi’s performance prompted Brett to offer him a role in his new play, Big Dada: The Rise And Fall Of Idi Amin. The part was to be played in the spirit of Brenda Fassie, Shirley Bassey and Grace Jones. “And you have to do it in drag,” said Brett.
In playing the role, Odidi found he loved drag. “I got to use all of me – I got to sing and dance and all of it in one, it was almost like a release in a way. It was still difficult though because I wasn’t ready yet.”
Ever since she came to life in 2001, Odidiva has taken Mfenyana all over the world – from solo shows to big productions – and this year he’ll be moving to Los Angeles for a while at the request of an American producer who wants to build the Odidiva brand with black America.
Odidi is passionate about the role his sexual identity and art form plays in history. “My goal is a school of drag, of queer art culture, and to create a library of documented history of queer African culture. “There is so much more to it than people realise. I would love kids to learn to accept themselves, and to be useful to society for who they are.”
Words by Bianca Coleman
